Cushing's remission?

[Drew]

Hi, I am new to this forum. I searched for the question I am asking, so forgive me if repeat, as I did not find a similar one.

My very stoic minpin is 14 and started panting and seemed in pain last September. I took her to the emergency vet as my regular vet just retired. They ran some bloodwork and showed elevated enzymes and wanted to run a Cushing's test and CT, since they thought she had Cushing's symptoms, but I couldn't afford everything they wanted to do ($800+).

I then researched the disease and wanted to try anything less toxic before starting any kind of treatment. I started her on some Cushex drops and she completely turned around, no panting or lethargy. Her appetite came back and she seemed fine.

About two weeks ago, she started to drink/urinate constantly and lost a tremendous amount of weight. I made an appointment with a vet for the next day. That morning, she turned around completely, no more excess drink/urine, started to eat regularly and seemed very happy so I canceled the appointment. It has been three days now, and other than sleeping a little more, she is doing great.

Does Cushing's go up and down like this? Can you rely on how your dog looks and feels as where to go next with treatment? I know people have been fine with the treatment, but she is 14 and I just don't know if I want to put her through that yet. Especially until I verify that she indeed has Cushing's and what type.

Thanks in advance for your help!

[labblab]

Welcome to you and your girl! I just wanted to alert you that I have moved your thread from the "How To" forum to our main "Questions and Discussion" forum. I believe our members will be more likely to see your question if it is posted here on our main forum. :)

I am very glad you've found us.
Marianne

[goldengirl88]

Without any results from testing it is hard to advise you what is going on. Cushing's is one of the hardest diseases to diagnose. There are many other diseases that have similar symptoms. You must have a Cushing's diagnosis before treating your dog for it. To complicate things you are using Cushex drops which do not work, they are worthless. Has your dog been tested for diabetes or thyroid disease?. What is the age and weight of your dog? Drinking buckets of water and peeing are symptoms of Cushing's. What other symptoms is she presenting with? My suggestion to you is to get some diagnostic testing to confirm what is going on. Cushing's dogs gain weight and are ravenous all the time. I am thinking there is something else going on. You can get a urine creatinine test to rule out Cushing's, as that is the most economical of the test. You can get an ACTH test, an LDDS, a blood panel, and ultra sound. These are all diagnostic tools to see if your dog has Cushing's and what type it has. There are 2 drugs used to manage this disease as there is no cure. They are Lysodren, and Trilostane brand name Vetoryl. Your dog can live out it's natural life if well managed. You need to difinitively find out what is wrong with your dog before doing anything. I am so sorry, I forgot to welcome you, and let you know we are here to help and support you. Please get us any info from any tests you have had in order to help you better. One more important thing, these Cushex drops could actually be making your dog sick, have you considered that? Blessings
Patti

[molly muffin]

Hello and welcome to the forum.

To answer your question, no cushings doesn't usually go up and down in the way you described and losing weight is not typically a symptom of cushings.
I would have them run a full CBC and a urine culture to start out with. A urinary tract infection can cause both pain and the peeing that you are seeing. Diabetes can cause the peeing/drinking and the weight loss. A CBC will show glucose and make sure they do a T4 to check thyroid also. The culture can rule that in or out.

That is what I would do to start to try to figure this out for your furbaby.

Again welcome to the forum and feel free to ask anything at any time. We'll do our best to help you try to figure this out.

Sharlene and molly muffin

[Drew]

Thanks for the advice. I will get her to the vet this week.

[gatorgirl_bama]

Welcome to the forum and sorry that your baby is having these problems.

Please please please listen to everything Marianne, Sharlene & Patti said. They, and the others that will stop by and give you advice, are a wealth of knowledge when it comes to Cushings and everything related to Cushings.

Unfortunately I found the forum too late to save my Tia, but I have read almost every thread here and if either of my other babies shows even one sign of this disease, I'll know exactly what to do.

Again, welcome and take care.

Donna

[Squirt's Mom]

Hi and welcome to you and your baby! :)

Cushing's can have a sort of remission BUT only when the pup is on the drug called Vetoryl, or Trilostane, as treatment for the Cushing's. Without treatment, the disease continues to progress. It is possible in the early stages for signs to seem to come and go, but they grow stronger and more consistent over time - they don't go away. ;)

I agree with the suggestion to look at the organ function via lab work first. This is probably the test they ran in Sept. when they found the liver enzymes elevated.

As for the Cushex, please stop using it. It has one benefit and one benefit only - and that is to fill the bank accounts of the ones selling it. They care NOTHING about the animals that ingest their product but simply prey on the fears of new cush parents. The formula changes repeatedly and more times than not contain ingredients that are harmful for a cush pup; there is no telling where the ingredients come from nor how pure or clean they are; this product has had no scientific studies nor peer reviews - only testimonials by customers who may well be paid; NO MED works for two diseases that are polar opposites as Cushex claims - it claims to aid both Cushing's and Addison's. So please stop your contributions toward the yachts of the sellers of Cushex. ;)

Let us know what you learn at the vet. We will be here to help you in any way we can.
Hugs,
Leslie and the gang